Now Hear This 12.

1.      Where do Your Blogs go: I think this question is down to the language barrier of the written word, either that or people are using Google translate badly, I post them online, advertise them on social media and then they get filled under DONE!

2.      Will I release anymore books: I would if I had the skill set, the holiday blogs suit the book treatment more than the web, but I think life’s too short to worry about it, if I can I will, if I can’t then be like me and don’t lose any sleep over it!

3.      Are you a nerd: erm probably, who knows we are all nerds in our own little ways, I’m not a nerd in a technology way, I don’t have a special skill set, I just blunder on in life, so I suppose I’m a nerd regarding life.

4.      What inspires you: Life the universe and everything, a spark can pop into my head at any time, if I don’t record it here and then it’s gone forever , I probably lose around 95% of my ideas as they happen when I can’t even make a note of the idea, but in reality its nearly always life and just occasionally a song will trigger a memory and away I go.

5.      What helps you choose: again its more to do with how I feel, today this is my third blog of the day sometimes I am very good at getting ideas formed and then down onto paper, but sometimes I don’t write for a couple of days, they usually choose themselves, you kind of get a feeling for them, they stand out, you know if it’s got legs, I rarely write a fully prepared blog and dispose of it these days, purely and simply there’s stuff that I have gotten rid of, and I regret it as I know I simply should have let the idea breath.

6.      Have you changed your perspective: I suppose I have, I could say I’m older and wiser, but I’m probably not lol, I’m much calmer these days, don’t get me wrong I can still howl at the moon, but I simply tend to go with the flow, being angry very rarely gets you anywhere in life and it’s the same in a writing sense, from time to time I have written angry and to be honest when I look back I tend to dislike what I have written.

7.      What blogs are popular: I know this question is one of the most popular, of late everything is, as the blog has been hitting high triple figures every day, some more than others, the first year I rarely hit triple figures for all of them and then suddenly it changed, I have no idea why but these days you might get a couple that only do low triple figures, but the bulk of them creep over the four figure mark, the best read one is still Girls which has had nearly 4000 hits since it was published.

8.      Does your family read them: the wife used to, but I don’t think she does now, when it was based on our social life, yes just to make sure that I hadn’t burnt any bridges, but as for the rest of the family, nope I don’t think they do, they have their own lives to get on with.

9.      Why the long gaps between blogs: it all depends on my mental health at the time, I might simply have writers block, it might simply be I have a life to live and its getting in the way, read the blogs and decide where I am at on the day, I wish I could post something substantial every day I simply can’t, sometimes the previous blog is still trending and I know if I post something it stops the previous blog dead in its tracks, I am simply trying to be the best version of me on any given day.

10. How is your health: to be honest its pretty shit but hopefully on an upward trajectory, I have been told I can have a new knee but no date as of yet, my diabetes is doing really well, and my mental health is doing ok, it’s pretty even at the moment a few minor blips along the way but nothing to be worried about.

11. Have you any unfinished blogs that you intend to publish: I recently started the holiday blog and ran into technology issues, this caused the numbers to splutter as I couldn’t publish the chapters in a timely manner, the world lost interest (the numbers died very quickly, mind you it might just have been a shit blog) so I lost interest, the last part is written with no intentions of posting it, it seems very joyless so nope that’s one not going to be finished, by and large it’s a rare thing for me for not to finish a blog I think this is only the third one where I felt disinclined to continue.

12. Would I write a novel: I have tried a number of times and I do have a number of ideas fleshed out however I don’t like any of the work I put into them, so at the moment I have four good (well I think they are) ideas, one has the potential to be a serial, however unless I could devote some serious and I mean serious amount of time I doubt that they will get completed. I have the outlines, I have the story, what I don’t have and it’s the hardest part is the voice for the characters!

13. Favourite blog to write: no idea, I like them all when I write them and then hate them all once they are posted, I have a soft spot for a couple but only because I have gone back to read after somebody has asked me a question regarding them, and I think, actually that’s not bad!

14. Have you written any and not released/published them: at the last count its standing at around 350, not all are completed, some might simply be a line as a start but gone no further, every now and again I flick through my notes and if something was to take my fancy I might do something with it, I started one called Fools Gold its only two paragraphs but I think I have an idea on how to finish it, watch this space.

15. Which blog has had the most comments: the blog “Girls” hands down as everybody wants to know more about “the girl who stole my heart and buried it out on the moors” and I’m still not going to say!

16. You don’t seem to mention anything political: Opinions are like arseholes everybody has one, and my opinions are exactly that mine, I used to be very political but my faith in all parties has been shattered, good luck to you and all who sail with you, for me I’ll keep my powder dry for when I want to really have someone come after me…..oops!

17. Who do you not like: Liars, first and foremost, fake people and we all know that there are a lot of them about, and bullies, especially bullies who hid in plain sight and are everybody’s bestest buddies but in reality they are horrible shitty people who talks shit about everybody behind their backs, there is one person at the top of my list I could name names but I would lose 95% of my friends enough said!

18. Where does the Walks With Broken Hoop name come from: a medical condition, I was taking a medication for an ailment that gave off gas more noxious than anything released in the great war, it was my native American name given to me by a well-known welder.

19. What is the biggest issue for the blog: a one-word answer is time, if I had more time, I might be slightly more consistent, but I don’t at the moment so everybody will have to grin and bear it.

20. What does the future hold: well more blogs coming your way, the numbers have been incredible of late and I know they cant last, well they could but I doubt that they will as I alluded to earlier in this blog, there are a small number already written, I have a number of ideas that  I wish to work on and you never know when a spark might pop up, I would love to do more historical social life ones, but I honestly, I don’t want to just spew some crap out, the historical ones are the hardest to do, yes I have some fabulous memories of me and my friends from my past that I would want to spend the time and do the memories justice, if you want to know what I mean go find the blog “The Dawn Patrol” that took over nine days to write and polish to a standard I was happy with, it had to be the truth and not some wispy parcel of bullshit.

So there you  go another “Now Hear This” blog, truth be told I could do another 80 questions, as I have so many queries regarding the blogs, I do get a lot of questions, I might answer something if I think it deserves a personal answer but usually I save them for these blogs, as a lot of the questions are very similar, if I haven’t responded and its not amongst this set go back through the previous eleven blogs chances are they are amongst the previous sets.

So that’s it for now watch the skies for incoming I have been writing up a storm, and these blogs will be published, stay safe and stay alive, until the next time I publish some woeful crap/masterpiece, you decide……..Toodles!

Prosopagnosia

 

No the title does not refer to an unreleased Def Leppard album, I have had a number of queries from people regarding some of my identified health issues I suffer from, at one point I thought I was suffering from early onset dementia, I even joked about it while I was teaching, which I got reported to HR for, thankfully somebody else on the course (the beauty of working in a teaching establishment) thought I had another condition which they did some tests on me (during work time) and they were very happy when the diagnosis came back as they had never come across a case personally, here comes the technical bit, and no I didn’t write it, it comes directly from a medical site!

Prosopagnosia, also known as face blindness, is a cognitive disorder of face perception in which the ability to recognize familiar faces, including one's own face (self-recognition), is impaired, while other aspects of visual processing (e.g., object discrimination) and intellectual functioning (e.g., decision-making) remain intact. The term originally referred to a condition following acute brain damage (acquired prosopagnosia), but a congenital or developmental form of the disorder also exists, with a prevalence of 2–2.5%.

A common misconception is that prosopagnosics see faces' contours and details as blurry or distorted. The condition is not characterized by warped visuals. Seeing distorted faces is a common symptom of prosopometamorphopsia, not prosopagnosia.

Acquired prosopagnosia results from occipital-temporal lobe damage and is most often found in adults. It is subdivided into apperceptive and associative prosopagnosia.

There are no widely accepted treatments. Though there have been several attempts at remediation, no therapies have demonstrated lasting improvements across a group of prosopagnosics. Prosopagnosics often learn to use "piecemeal" or "feature-by-feature" recognition strategies. This may involve secondary clues such as clothing, gait, hair colour, skin colour, body shape, and voice.

Because the face seems to function as an important identifying feature in memory, it can be difficult for prosopagnosics to keep track of information about people and socialize normally.

Prosopagnosia leads to social challenges, as inability to recognize faces can be misinterpreted as lack of interest in others. Using visual or auditory cues in place of facial recognition is unreliable and tiring. The condition can also be emotionally strenuous to mask, increasing the likelihood of social anxiety and depression.

I was flabbergasted, as I have been having issues for a number of years and had reduced my ability to reply to people, on hair styles their gait and even voices, I even overheard some people say I was “difficult” I’m really not but I do struggle in “social” situations, I moved back to my hometown over 23 years ago and I said to my brother that I hadn’t seen any of my old friends in that time, this explains a lot, I’m not being stand offish I am literally face blind, I’m not as some people think difficult, I do recognise myself (I’m sorry to say) .

My issue was probably caused by several hits to the head (no jokes please) I fell down some stone stairs at school (at age 11) in which I lost my sense of smell, it does come back periodically really intensely but only lasts about ten minutes at a time, it was because of this injury that I was prone to fits of rage especially if I was slapped across the head, I fractured my skull and it took nearly three years to heal, it came in handy after a couple of incidents with a couple of bullies and I kind of went bat shot crazy on them, people tended to leave me alone after that, an incident in the army involving falling from a helicopter (only a short distance) and my NCO dropping my rifle down to me (oops) and my helmet had come off, again I was dazed and confused for a couple of days(wasn’t I always) and the last one was at my last place of work doing a job on the back of a pick-up instead of setting up a mobile scaffold, we decided to work off the back of a pick-up truck as it was quicker (and it was job and knock quite litrally) and I had an argument with a steel girder in a multi-story car park, I lost! I then spent three days in hospital recovering, but that seems to be the root cause of my issue.

It’s not going to get any worse and it’s certainly not going to kill me, however there isn’t any cure either at least nothing definitive, so no not being difficult or awkward or even ignorant if you know me and you see me say hello, honestly you will make me the happiest person around and hopefully I can stop thinking that the world hates me!

Thankfully after the slight detour the blog is getting itself back on track as I have a number already written and hot to trot, sorry the condition doesn’t stop me from typing up this drivel, I thought I better say it before anybody else di, stay safe, stay alive and I will see you around next time but until then…..Toodles!

Four on the Floor - 1979.

 

1979 was the year my interest in music went into overdrive I did lots of part time jobs so I went from buying the odd single every now and again to buying an album a week, on these “Four on the Floor” blogs I simply pick four random albums and give an honest opinion of them, some I might like, some I might not, even if it’s a band I like you will always get an honest review!

Motorhead – Overkill     1979. 8/10.

I will be honest and admit to not being a huge of the band at the time, this album appealed to me as I was a huge fan of the Dickies at the time, I like it loud and fast was my motto for music back in the day. And this fitted the bill perfectly, I loved the album cover, I love the title track, and it does exactly what it says on the tin it rocks big style, it gets in, slaps you around the face and then gallops off into the distance, with tracks like Capricorn and Metropolis and Stay Clean, I still don’t how they didn’t get sued for the riff to No Class, but it does the job that its designed to do, I love Lemmy’s Lyrics and while I do have a couple of albums in my collection, I wouldn’t say that I’m their biggest fan, when they rock they do it better than most!

Bad Company -  Desolation Angels     1979. 9/10.

The first album that I bought on the day of release by the band and I was praying that it wasn’t as crap as the previous one Burning Sky, which I hated, I loved the first three albums, Running with the pack is still my number one go to album by them but this is a close second, believe it or not it loses a bit because of the very polished production, there’s not a bad performance or a bad song on the album , pure class every single step of the way, it was a shame that they tried to recreate the magic with the same formula with the next album Rough Diamonds and got it so wrong, good old fashioned Rock N Roll best played loud.

ACDC – Highway to Hell     1979. 9.5/10.

Again I had albums by the band but I was sat in my local record shop to buy this on the day of release, and I loved it straight away, its hard to guess which one I prefer to this and the Back In Black both albums firing on all six cylinders and the production on both albums were polished beyond belief (hence the slight markdown on the rating) I will be honest as good as the title song is I don’t think it’s the best song on the album, and if I never heard it again I wouldn’t miss it, its great I’m just sick of hearing it, lots of people will say I’m a godless heathen, hey its just my opinion, you can have yours I’ll have mine!

For the record Beating around the bush is my favourite, although I rarely flick through the album, I always play it from the start right through the end (nano nano – shazbat).

Led Zeppelin – In through the Outdoor     1979 8/10.

Everybody who knows me knows that I am not a fan of the band, I get why people like them (although it took until Coda for me to get it) I had no interest in them at all, didn’t like them, I didn’t care for Jimmy Page (still don’t) but this was left at my house by a friend of my brothers and I wanted to see what the fuss was all about, it took a couple of listens before I kind of got it, I even covered (only in band rehearsals ) Hot Dog (we called it “I’m Pissed Again” I won’t take the credit for the lyric rewrite) it was a laugh, but by the time I had finished playing the album a couple of times I have to admit to having enjoyed it, probably because there’s not a lot of Jimmy Page influence in the song writing, I’m still not a fan of the band, I can take them or leave them, I still don’t care for Mr Page his guitar playing, his production methods or his plagiaristic attitudes to old blues players, but hey ho he’s still rich and I’m not, I became a fan of Robert Plant and his solo stuff because he doesn’t try and copy this formula, at least he tries different things, this is still the only album by the band that I can listen to all the way through in one sitting!

Feral

The country seems as though it is going to hell in a hand basket, it’s a one-way ticket to oblivion and the brakes have failed! Many people are struggling; there seems to be a fine line between those that have and (the many) those that do not.

I keep telling myself that I must be looking back to the “good old days” with rose tinted glasses, in all honesty we had very little, but we simply got on with life, nowadays if you want to have a decent (not good) standard of living, you need both parents working, I recently read a study that the modern family is only 12 weeks away from destitution, I can really believe it. When I was a kid I was respectful, I was polite, I tried to be on my best behaviour, nowadays I see large groups of kids (not all) simply being feral, swearing fighting, throwing things generally having a lack of respect for their elders, I’m sure they weren’t brought up like that, maybe they were, but its disheartening, most kids simply don’t give a F**k at all about anything, I don’t drive so I would say about 97% of the time I use public transport, there’s food being smeared all over seats, windows, stuff thrown at people and generally causing mayhem, the bus drivers can’t do anything as they are by themselves.

Now I don’t believe I have fallen into the “old man” syndrome it simply seems to be getting worse, it’s not helped with “adults” that are just as bad as the kids, the drunks, the smack rats ( I do not apologise for using this term) I will gladly give to the homeless but not to a suspected smack rat, buy a homeless person a sandwich and a cup of coffee, they are gracious and thankful, but buy a smack rat the same they are more likely to throw it in your face, simply because they want the money to buy, yes you guessed it, more smack, the police have been rendered impotent as there are too few of them and they have lost any respect that the public had for them simply because of the actions of a few bad apples!

I blame the Thatcher years(the 80’s) that’s when drugs seemed to become more and more prevalent as the decade pushed on, I certainly don’t have the answers, and I don’t attach the blame to any political parties, they all share the blame equally as they do not do anything but stuff their snouts in the trough and feed, there might be one or two good ones, but not many in my opinion, all the ones that I have met have been vain, arrogant and simply full of their own importance. Some of them aren’t even politicians they are simply shit stirrers dressed in posh suits!

Apologies if this blog has upset anybody but I simply wanted to vent, I’m going to cut it short here because otherwise it will simply turn into a massive pile of bile! Yes I know I am getting older, and I don’t think that I am any wiser than I was when I left school, but most of the time I feel ashamed of what I see this country turning into, there will be plenty of blogs coming down the line, I have plenty of happier ideas, it won’t all be about doom and gloom, so watch the skies, there will be more incoming as soon as this one runs out of steam and numbers, until then be good, stay safe, stay alive and until the next blog its Toodles from me!

Broken Promises.

The promise was simple: work hard, stay loyal, and retirement would take care of itself. Decades later, that contract lies in pieces, and an entire generation is walking away from jobs that stopped delivering years ago. Why?

Clocking in for thirty years straight earned gold watches in the 1980s. Today, it earns redundancy when quarterly earnings dip. Companies preached family values while treating employees like disposable assets, and workers who gave everything got nothing back when times get tough.

Defined benefit plans vanished overnight, replaced by market-dependent retirement accounts that crashed spectacularly—twice. Employers shifted risk entirely onto employees, who watched their nest eggs shrink during the dotcom bust and the 2008 housing collapse while executive bonuses continued to climb.

The 1987 Black Monday crash hit early in careers. The 2001 recession struck during prime earning years. Then, the 2008 financial crisis devastated both home equity and retirement funds. Each recovery demanded starting over, and resilience wore thin after rebuilding the same financial foundation three separate times.

Output doubled through technology adoption and process improvements. Headcount still dropped during every reorganization. Surviving colleagues absorbed eliminated positions without additional compensation, working harder for companies that rewarded efficiency with redundancy notices rather than raises or job security.

Salaries allegedly increased roughly 10% over two decades while housing costs tripled in most areas. Groceries and university tuition for your kids outpaced income growth by staggering margins. Real purchasing power declined steadily, so the same job title afforded progressively less each year despite experience gains.

Premium contributions for private healthcare (if you didn’t have it in your salary package at work) that once cost £50 monthly now exceed £500 for family coverage in some cases even more. Deductibles simply climbed to hundreds of pounds before insurance pays anything. Prescription costs, specialist visits, more people are paying for private care simply because they can’t get seen by an NHS that is being raped by Management and outside contractors, they soon realise  surprise billing transformed healthcare from a benefit into a financial burden that devours pay checks faster than rent.

New technology like Pagers seemed intrusive in 1995. Smartphones made escape impossible by 2010. Employers expected instant email responses at 9 pm and vacation accessibility. The boundary between professional obligations and personal time dissolved completely, and this left workers perpetually on call without overtime compensation or mental health considerations.

Telecommunications, banking, retail, and manufacturing consolidated relentlessly. Each merger announcement triggered layoff rumours that usually proved accurate. Duplicate departments got "streamlined," which meant experienced workers training their replacements before receiving redundancy packages that barely covered mortgage payments until the next position materialized—if one materialized.

CV’s that date from the 1980s got filtered out by applicant tracking systems. Interview panels questioned whether older candidates could "keep up" with workplace changes. Promotions went to younger employees with flashier presentations rather than veterans with proven track records.

Fresh graduates with theoretical knowledge supervised professionals who'd navigated actual crises for decades. New bosses dismissed institutional wisdom as resistance to change and implemented strategies that veterans recognized as failed initiatives repackaged with buzzwords. Expertise became irrelevant when leadership prioritized youth over competence.

Productivity soared from home offices during lockdowns, destroying decades of management assumptions about supervision requirements. Commutes vanished, meetings shortened, and output increased—yet companies demanded returns to cubicles anyway. The charade became obvious: offices existed for control, not performance, and workers resented the transparent power play.

Retirement projections sometimes show income falling short of the lifestyle once promised. After factoring in healthcare, inflation, and longevity, some Gen X workers see limited payoff in staying longer. Instead, they leave demanding roles early, simplify living expenses, and rely on work to bridge the gap.

Caring for old parents while supporting adult children creates a financial squeeze unique to Gen X. Medical needs demand time and flexibility, while unstable employment and student debt keep adult kids dependent longer. Faced with constant strain, some Gen X workers reduce hours or exit the workforce earlier to regain control.

Offering to help with Student loans by co-signing loan agreements ( I know some people who have and the kids simply walked away and left the parents with the debt to pick up) doesn’t trigger retirement by itself (not that I would know, I couldn’t afford to offer any financial assistance as I am a one wage family), but it reshapes the timeline. When adult children struggle with payments, Gen X parents try to absorb financial risk that complicates long-term planning. Some choose earlier exits, downsizing, or career pivots to regain control before defaults threaten savings or credit stability.

Performative busyness replaced actual achievement as the primary success metric. Staying late signalled dedication regardless of output quality. Elaborate presentations mattered more than project outcomes. Workers who delivered results efficiently got overlooked while colleagues who mastered workplace theatre earned promotions.

Arbitrary age cutoffs dismiss professionals at peak competence. Skills accumulated over decades get discarded based on birth certificates rather than performance evaluations, as I found out after 35 years’ service with my previous employers. Forced exits eliminate institutional knowledge while younger replacements struggle through learning curves that retiring workers could have shortened, wasting organizational resources through unnecessary turnover.

Software replaced roles that once required human judgment and specialized training. Manufacturing positions disappeared due to robotics. Customer service moved to chatbots. Administrative functions got absorbed by algorithms. Career expertise became obsolete overnight. The result? Workers scrambling to reinvent themselves professionally.

Evaluation systems measured easily quantifiable data points while ignoring meaningful impact. Box-checking exercises replaced substantive feedback about value delivered. Subjective ratings from managers determined raises and promotions despite a disconnect from real accomplishments. The process reduced complex professional contributions to spreadsheet entries that captured nothing important about actual work quality.

Mastering new software platforms every few years wasn't enough when entire industries transformed overnight. Technologies learned last decade became irrelevant this quarter. And training budgets disappeared while job requirements expanded constantly. Those who built careers on specific expertise found themselves repeatedly starting over.

Hiring committees asked about favourite apps and weekend activities instead of discussing problem-solving capabilities. Decades of industry knowledge were lost to candidates who matched superficial cultural preferences. Experience became a liability framed as inflexibility. Gray hair in interview rooms triggered assumptions about technological incompetence regardless of actual digital fluency or professional accomplishments.

Traffic congestion doubled over twenty years while salaries remained flat. Fuel prices also fluctuated wildly. Parking fees climbed alongside real estate values. Two hours daily spent sitting in cars or crowded trains and buses represented unpaid work time that they never factored into hourly wage calculations or quality of life considerations.

Cubicle walls came down in the name of collaboration to replace privacy with constant noise and interruption. The issue with these settings is that now, phone conversations from thirty desks compete for attention simultaneously. Concentration became impossible when every sneeze and keyboard click echoed across warehouse-style floors.

Contract positions replaced permanent employment across industries previously known for stability. Benefits disappeared as companies reclassified employees as independent contractors. Steady pay checks gave way to variable income streams dependent on platform algorithms and client availability. The employment model that once provided security transformed into something resembling perpetual temp work with fancy branding.

Career advancement meant uprooting your family from established jobs and selling homes in down markets to move. Relocation packages shrank or vanished entirely while housing costs in corporate hub cities climbed beyond reach. Choosing family stability over professional growth has become common when companies refused to accommodate geographic preferences.

Decades of service offered zero protection when revenue projections dipped. Workers who sacrificed family time and personal health for corporate success got terminated via Zoom calls. Seniority and performance records became irrelevant during workforce reductions guided solely by spreadsheet formulas. The final lesson in corporate priorities arrived through impersonal video conferences.

Am I bitter about life in general, no I don’t think I am, however this blog was created due to a conversation I had with someone from my previous place of work who is proud of the new system of working, any place of work who can lose over 120 years of experience overnight from three people, when the rest of the team (that’s seventeen of them) don’t even have 100 years between them says just about everything you need to know, as of today I have 2048 days until I retire, and I simply cannot wait!

This reflection isn’t driven by bitterness, but clarity. With retirement in sight, the excitement comes not from what’s left to give—but from finally being done with a system that broke its promise long ago.

Holiday – 3.

Day 10.

It didn’t go well, I had another shit night’s sleep, I was up at 02.17am, I was hoping to finally get some sleep on this holiday, its simply beating me over the head, as I now sit and wait for the sun to come up and for the wife to wake up (lucky mare) extra sleep simply isn’t going to happen so I will simply have to grin and bear it (hopefully).

We had made some cunning plans for the day ahead, I needed to be on the ball to gather up all of the spinning plates, the painkilling tablets and creams simply weren’t doing anything, barely no relief at all, and I was suffering. I had considered alcohol, but that simply makes me hungry not sleepy, I was though definitely returning to being grumpy! Let’s see how the day goes, once the wife was up we had some breakfast, and then ordered a car (its starting to be habit forming but strangely cheaper than hiring a car) we arrived at the park and the wife went off to do her ride while I waited, and waited to be honest I didn’t mind the longer I waited the longer I could sit, we were glad that we decided we got mobility scooters, we got a pizza for lunch between us and the wandered off to see some Vikings, which although we weren’t doing anything but looking at stuff, it was a pretty cool place well thought out and quite busy. I found a hat and was quite happy for a split second before I realized that “Bob” (see old blogs) was trailing me and was intending to sink his teeth into me, I was lagging and I knew I didn’t have long, when he took a bite he certainly left his mark as I was totally miserable, what made it worse I was trying to hide it from the wife.

I spiralled into general unhappiness and I was snappy with the wife something I regretted straightaway. But “Bob” came back for seconds and he got his pound of flesh, the pain in both my knees and my hip was unbelievable especially as we were sat down, how did I  do this with the kids all those years ago? I continued to be grumpy, snappy at most things and generally just a pain in the arse. What I wanted was some good old painkillers from the USA, I had seen an advert the night before fore some new Advil Capsules and some cream, after the park we went to the nearest Walmart and I got stocked up, this blunted “Bob’s” attack as I kind of melted back into the seat in the Lyft on the way back to the resort, its been well over twelve months since my last episode, I should have realised that he would raise his head, I simply hadn’t wanted it to be on this bloody holiday! I needed to take stock and regroup, definitely an early night for me and damn the consequences, an early start in the morning all for the start of a better day!

Day 11.

What a surprise a weird nights sleep and back to being an intruder in my own bedroom, I still woke early but I did feel happier, washed out because of the drugs and the cream (which did wonders for my hip) I made sure that the wife was up at the appointed time as we were heading to Animal Kingdom to do the Avatar ride (not me) we were on the first bus off site, however when we got there and the queues were huge with an hours waiting time (although they do keep you busy and entertained as you move along) I enjoyed the sunrise and watched squirrels playing/fighting and eating, generally having more fun and mobility than me! I was dragged on a river ride, slow and easy no drops nothing to upset my rapidly declining body and yes, I enjoyed it, but it’s simply not my cup of tea, mind you it was a million times better than the Peter Pan ride from earlier in the week, go figure!

We then had to journey in yet another Lyft to Target as our suggested present for the youngest grandson was proving difficult to track down, Target was nice and kind of sterile, and we succeeded in our mission (only just) but they did have some lovely cookies, they carried very limited stock (Dragon ball Z items) in store but they had loads of great goodies online, I needn’t have gone on the bloody holiday then!

Back to the resort to get changed and off to Disney Springs to go the Irish Bar Raglan Road for a late lunch (we had the lamb and it was the best meal of the entire holiday)and two cheeky pints of Guiness the wife even had a cider her first alcoholic drink in over four years, we had a small wander back through the shops and back to the resort on the buses provided, however I suffered (I watched the drivers dashboard) 8.8 miles back to the resort as nobody took pity on an old man with a stick, I have never known pain like it, however I cut my nose to spite my face rather than having to ask someone to give up their seat, but the looks on their faces as I struggled to get off the bus and held most of the arseholes up said enough, I suffered but I didn’t care I know I shamed a couple of them! To be honest the journey back to the resort took the shine off the day and I was soon looking for the Advil (both formats) and was soon in bed asleep, not for long as we made a small supper in the room, for a very quiet night, I needed it this getting old thing isn’t for me!

Day 12.

A day with a funky start we were intending to watch a fireworks display and a parade, so we could take our own sweet time today, more painkillers as the residual pain from the night before was still there, we were in a better place, so we had lunch in a hotel and then came back to the resort to recharge our batteries and a small lie down (thank god) things were on the up surely nothing bad could affect the day (apart from me) I made sure that I had taken my painkillers in a structured manner to get through the day, walking I can just about manage however standing still absolutely kills me, my ankle (obviously I’m walking funny and not funny ha ha) had now decided to kick in as well, and when all joined in together I knew I wasn’t in for a great night even with the medication helping me.

The park was busy we tried for food but where we wanted was rammed, so I pissed the wife of straight away, I didn’t want fries with anything, I simply avoided everything, and I claimed I would get something later  turns out I didn’t, the wife went for a hot dog and fries, the place is super busy at the best of times, but at this time of night we had definitely miscalculated, getting the food wasn’t an issue getting a seat was, the wife was on the war path, but thankfully we got a seat quite quickly, the wife at this point hated the world and everybody in it, I hadn’t helped matters, but I had enough to contend with!

Fed and watered she went back to simmering hatred as opposed to all out hating, we had a mission to find some Pins (we English would call them badges but not the yanks) for the youngest daughters collection and it seemed we were not going to be very successful, however we triumphed and got them all, by this point I was relying heavily on my stick as I was in real pain and we weren’t going to get a scooter for two hours in the park (something I hate using but I simply couldn’t dismiss it any more)I found a number of suitable perches along the way, something for me to bend my legs and rest, I’m not a huge park fan at the best of times the wife is and I wanted her to have as good a time as she could, she suffers more than me, but she sucks it up better than me , anyway I’m an old cripple who doesn’t do rides, I do however get to people watch and that in itself is great.

The wife did a small ride and then we headed to our spot for the parade, I found somewhere where I didn’t have to stand, and the wife was at the front, of course the parade was fab this was brand new kit not something cobbled together in the seventies, they do know how to do a parade, and then we headed around to the castle for the main attraction, we had seen this online but the wife wanted to experience this first hand, fireworks and projections what could go wrong? A couple of things we couldn’t find a perch so we had to stand and we were actually too close to the front and the fireworks did me in, it was like being back in my old days, if the wife hadn’t marshalled me, I would have legged it, I should have done the math and suggested we stand further back, I was a basket case my first serious PTSD attack in six years , my fault I simply didn’t think, the wife thankfully got me back to the resort, to be honest I was like a zombie, I fell into bed with no drugs and I did sleep weird dreams but I did rest for once, as I went and sank in the bed, I hoped that tomorrow better be a better day!

Holiday Week Two.

Day 7.

Longest night’s sleep in over two months, longest not the best, off for the usual breakfast which did perk me up, just a little, Today marks the halfway mark of the holiday, a day of shopping for the wife, truth be told I feel just a little off, but we soldier on as you have to make every second of every day count not just in the holiday but in real life as well!

Using Lyft again today to get to Vineland Retail Park, we have had good days and bad days here, today was a bit meh, we then had a slow walk across the road to go to Publix to do a little shop for some bits and pieces, bought some pop, some sandwich making bits and pieces as a break from the meals in the resort which are ok if not a little limited, and some Pop tarts then a Lyft back to the resort and to chill, to be honest we are not the spring chickens we used to be and the “little” walk took more out of us because of the temperature, why pop tarts I know lot are going to ask?  simply because I’m addicted to them, especially cold! It is a hot day and a resting day for the pair of us, it’s not just me.

Turn the TV for some background noise, The Fifth Element has just started, well why not we both love it, it was not long before the wife had hit the snooze button she obviously needed it, I wasn’t long after the film ended, its usually me being the first to go, we woke up when it had just started to go dark outside so it was sandwiches and tea for supper, the end of a quiet day, don’t worry we had made cunning plans, but was my body up to it?

 

Day 8.

Weird night sleep, up at stupid o’clock, I even went back to bed around 04.30, and was back up feeling (not) refreshed around 07.00, a quick cooked breakfast and then off to Epic Universe, I was determined to do it on my own two feet, we had decided to split it into two, it was a bit of a hike in from the drop off point, if I was more able bodied it wouldn’t be so bad, not really but my hip had decided to kick in and kick me when I was down, but I pushed on like the hero that I am, The new park looks damn good, spick and span the only issue is there’s not enough cover, give it another year for the plants to grow in and it will benefit from it!

We decided to start in Nintendo world which really was a full on assault on my senses god knows what it would do to a child, it was pretty damn good, there seemed to be a riot going on it wasn’t really it was simply children and adults having a good time, I did a good deed and handed a wallet in, if I had been a bit quicker I could have given back to the person myself, I wasn’t and the staff thanked me profusely almost as if it was theirs, we had a good look at the land but didn’t do any of the rides , some of the times were 100 minutes plus! I don’t do them away, so I wasn’t bothered I did enjoy the merchandise as my credit card will attest to! I do get to people watch, which I do enjoy and I kind of enjoy the family’s have a wonderful time, although it felt like a riot going on, I never heard one child being told off once, a rare thing in any of the parks.

We had a chilled drink and then moved on to Dark Universe (all about the monsters) which was damn good and the wife got to do a ride which she loved, and I didn’t fall out with anybody (I know who knew I could be good) however she rushed off without listening to where I was going to be sat down, thankfully I was vigilant and caught her before she wandered to far, we then went for some food, which was nice but not inspiring, it filled a hole, we then headed back to the pick up point and we had decided when we came back to do day two in Epic Universe we would need Mobility Scooters.

Collecting up all of our goodies we got our Lyft back to our resort had a shower to chill, an evening meal (meatloaf again for me) we then headed back to the room to start plotting, I mean packing!

Day 9.

A decent five hours sleep, I’ll take it as I felt refreshed, I mean I’m still wandering around the room like a bloody Burglar, but I was refreshed so I will take it!

We went out for a Disney Bus to the park choice of the day, the queues were huge and the buses were not forthcoming for our destination we decided to (yes you guessed It) get a Lyft, by the time we actually got to the park all of the scooters were gone this was going to be a long painful day! we trudged around the park, this appeared as though it was going to be the pattern for the day, browsing through numerous merchandise stores, it didn’t look like we were going to see the wife getting on any rides today, we did a few musical bits (which actually were fun) hobbled around a bit more before ending up in the ABC Commissary for lunch, we always seem to come back, here its good and does exactly what it says on the tin. A chicken sandwich with fries (I’m really getting sick of fries) then we hobbled on and it was the hottest day of the mini heatwave that Florida was experiencing, it hit 90 degrees in bloody March, I was a tad hot!

We did another musical show (Villains) which was good but at this point we were very close to simply dropping, we had decided it was enough we hobbled very slowly back to the bus concourse, and then we had to stand in the bus concourse waiting over thirty five minutes for a bus back, it felt like I was home because even in Florida the bus service can be rubbish! We got back to the room I was in pain, I got painkillers and some painkilling cream for my hip, sandwiches for tea/supper, chilling (me in a drug fugue of painkillers how very dare you)hopefully tomorrow will be a better day, did we enjoy ourselves, yes we did, however the temperature and the walking definitely took its toll today!